Stay fit despite an ankle or foot injury

It’s an all-too-common scenario – you get inspired about a new exercise program, you excitedly launch into the first series of workouts, and within a week you’re laid up with a sore back, injured knee, aggravated shoulder or inflamed foot.

But there’s no reason that you have to lose fitness and gain weight when you’re injured. Many of the athletes and clients who I train find that they are more fit after rehabilitating an injury because they get a chance to try new forms of training during the healing period.

Ankle or Foot Injury Workout Basics

Perform the following workout 3x/week, with 48 hours rest between each workout

Complete 15 repetitions for each exercise.

Complete the two exercises back to back with minimal rest, then move on to the cardio booster.

Complete 60 seconds for each cardio booster.

Move 3-4x through these 3 stations (exercise 1 + exercise 2 + cardio booster)

Then move on to the next triple set!

Perform 30-60 minutes non-weight bearing cardio, like swimming or cycling, on the non-weight lifting days.

Ankle or Foot Injury Exercises

Machine Leg Extensions + Machine Leg Curls + Bicycle Cardio Booster

Incline Dumbbell Chest Press + Lat Pulldown + Rowing Machine or Elliptical Cardio Booster

Stability Ball Push-Up + Single Arm Dumbbell Row + Bicycle Cardio Booster

Weighted Crunches + Hanging Leg Raise + Bicycle Cardio Booster

For a little review on using exercise machines, please see my episode on weight-lifting machines. And to find out how to adapt your workout routine for other injuries, please check out my Quick Tips for knee injuries, shoulder injuries, and lower back injuries.

If you're dealing with a chronic or acute injury, I'm always happy to network with your physician and, with their input, design a customized exercise program for you to help you stay in the best shape possible.

Quick & Dirty Tip: You should not consider this to be medical advice, and you should follow a physician’s recommendation for movement about an injured joint. However, if your doctor tells you to simply rest for 2-4 weeks, you need to specifically ask them about alternatives to that  all-too-common prescription. There's no reason that you can't stay in lean and fit while rehabilitating!

posted Tuesday January 12th
by Ben Greenfield